Course Content
Introduction
Definition of fish, fishes, Fisheries and Aquatic habitats, Economic importance of fish
0/3
Taxonomy
Classification of Super class Pisces up to family, general characters of classes, Nomenclature of classes, family, genera and species of fishes, Identification of fishes of Nepal: Zoological key, illustration, specimens, experts, economically important food fishes of Nepal and their classification with characters
0/7
Digestive system
Structures of alimentary canal in different fishes, Mechanism of digestion (digestive glands, enzymes)
0/5
Nervous system
Structure of brain, Peripheral nervous system
0/3
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Excretory system of fish

  • The excretory organs consist of kidneys, ureters, and urinary bladder.

a) Kidney:

  • The kidneys of vertebrates are made up of nephrons or kidney tubules.
  • In ancestral vertebrates, the kidney possesses one nephron for each of those body segments that lay between the anterior and posterior end of the coelom.
  • The nephron drained into a duct called Wolffian or archinephric duct located posterior to the cloaca. This sort of kidney is known as holonephros because it extends to the entire length of the body.
  • The kidneys occupy a dorsal position in the body cavity and are placed just ventral to the vertebral column. In teleost, the kidney is distinguished into head and trunk regions.
  • The two kidneys are fused in the middle, forming a flattened wing-like middle portion of the trunk kidneys. From this wing-like structure, two tube-like structures are given out anteriorly which are separate from each other. At the anterior end of these tubes are present sac-like structures known as head kidneys.
  • The two head kidneys are separate. Posteriorly, from the middle part of the trunk kidney, the kidneys become narrow. This part is called as tail kidneys. Externally, a depression is visible which indicates that they are two structures.
  • The tail kidneys are also fused. The trunk kidneys are very big in comparison to the length of a fish. Dorsally, the trunk kidneys show several annulations whereas ventrally it is smooth in outline.

 

b) Ureter:

  • The mesonephric ducts or ureters lie closed together in the median line. Anteriorly, they are separate, posteriorly the two mesonephric ducts open separately into the urinary bladder. In some species, a sac-like enlargement is visible in the posterior region of the ureter.
  • This is known as the urinary bladder, but it is not homologous to that of higher vertebrates. The urinary bladder usually opens to the exterior by a common urinogenital aperture in’ male fish but a separate urinary aperture is present in female fish as found in Mystus.
  • The function of the ureter is to conduct urine up to the urinary bladder.
  • Histologically, it is made up externally by tunica adventitia, the middle layer contains lamina propria and smooth muscles and the outermost layer is columnar epithelial cells.
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